


Hate

by NoPerson



Series: Klance Week 2016 [2]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Day 2: Love/Hate, Klance Week 2016, M/M, Not so hate, klance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-06
Updated: 2016-08-06
Packaged: 2018-07-29 16:42:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,783
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7691962
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NoPerson/pseuds/NoPerson
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lance tells Keith something that's long overdue.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Hate

Despite the constant bickering, Lance has never truly hated Keith.

Oh, he has definitely been jealous of him. Back in the Garrison, the famous pilot named Keith had been a source of eternal frustration for Lance. No matter how hard Lance had tried to gain his rivals attention and respect, Keith had remained oblivious and straight up ignored Lance right up to his departure. Keith’s dropping out had lifted a guilty weight off of his chest, leaving his academic accomplishments stress free and giving him the promotion from a mere cargo pilot to a revered fighter pilot. 

Keith had always infuriated Lance. Lance’s reunion with his rival had involved less fanfare than he had expected, especially considering how Keith didn’t even seem to remember him until Lance had prompted him to. It seemed that the only way to gain Keith’s attention was through petty arguments and insults that drove the entire team insane and left the participants glaring from opposite corners of the room. Even after successfully learning how to form Voltron, Keith always managed to find a way to anger Lance until he turned red in the face and had to stomp away before any fights broke out.

But, they had been through a lot together, Keith and Lance and the entire team. They had overcome countless odds for the sake of forming Voltron to save civilizations, help friends, and defeat the Galra Empire. Though Lance would absolutely love to keep up their ridiculous rivalry for his pride and entertainment, he knows that it’s an unsustainable pleasure that needs to end for the sake of their team’s sanity.

Practically everyone inhabiting the ship had come to Lance at some point, begging him to find a way to put their fighting to an end. Hunk and Pidge had cornered him in the hall, broken parts and tools gathered in their arms in a way that looked extremely threatening. With a serious expression curtesy of Hunk and an outburst of frustration from Pidge, they had made him promise to fix his and Keith’s messed-up rivalry before the poor geniuses were driven insane. Shiro, Allura, and Coran had all ganged-up on him at once when he searched for a snack in the kitchen, all of their faces pulled tightly and sternly in a way that made Lance lose his appetite. All three had passive aggressively convinced Lance that the two teenagers had to find a way to solve their issues before their actions started affecting the performance of the entire team. Lance felt threatened enough to get his entire life together even before Coran chose to give him a reassuring pat on the back with enough force to split a Galra ship in half. 

Besides, even without the varying threats of his team members, Lance was already starting to think that things were going too far. Sure, getting a rise out of Keith through insults was exhilarating, but it was starting to get old. Ever since returning from their opposite ends of the universe, the team had been bonding more inside and outside of the exercises Allura planned for them during training sessions. Though the thought once made him feel nauseous, Lance was actually starting to enjoy Keith’s company. With every competitive bone in his body telling him otherwise, Lance wants to make sure everything is cool between him and Keith. 

Because of this recent development, Lance finds himself entering the training deck with anxiety in his step and sweat on his palms. It’s at times like these that Lances wishes he prepared some sort of speech because he has no clue what he’s going to do.

As per usual, Keith is in the middle of a battle with one of gladiators programmed to work with them. Of course Lance would find him here even when it’s one of the rare days that paladins have off from team training and battling the Galra. He’s about to open his mouth to tease Keith about his obsessive training schedule, an action that would be counterproductive to his true purpose, when he gets a good look at Keith.

The red paladin is intensely focused. His jacket is discarded in the corner, leaving the majority of his arms bare to reveal lean yet strong muscle. Keith’s brows are drawn together in concentration, his eyes intensely focused as sweat trickles down from the side of his forehead. His bayard is drawn and slicing expertly at the gladiator, his every move calculated but bold. It’s obvious that he’s been working hard in the training room for a while due to the skill he seems to have developed, but Lance can still tell that Keith’s sharp instinct are still playing a large role by the way his slim form occasionally tries a move that Lance would have never suspected given his current pattern. Watching Keith train like this makes Lance’s face turn red, though he’s not entirely sure why.

Soon enough, Keith delivers a fierce blow against his sparring partner and it disappears, Keith holding his final pose long enough to make Lance’s stomach flutter. Keith breaks his stance and wipes his open hand across his forehead. Luckily, he hasn’t noticed Lance’s presence yet, giving him some time to compose himself before approaching. 

Keith moves over to the side of the room where his jacket is located. His bayard transforms out of its sword form and he tosses it gently onto the floor. He bends down to move the fabric and grab a half-empty water bottle, his black shirt riding up in the process to expose a small sliver of smooth skin that makes Lance swallow thickly. Keith takes a long drink from the bottle, closing his eyes and giving Lance the extra time he needs to trail his eyes over Keith’s irritatingly ruffled and intriguing mullet. 

Finally, Lance gathers up the courage to walk forward until he’s only a few feet away from his fellow paladin. “Hey, Keith.”

Keith’s eyes immediately shoot open and he stops drinking, lowering the water and screwing the cap back on so he can glare. “What are you doing here?”

“Looking for you.” Lance decides to be blunt. Otherwise, they’ll be here for the rest of the day.

“Okay.” Keith blinks and narrows his eyes suspiciously. Lance narrows his eyes back at him out of habit. “Why?”

This situation is already getting tense and Lance has barely even had the chance to say anything. He was hoping this conversation would go smoothly but he had forgotten to factor in how every conversation seemed to go between them. “I needed to talk to you.”

Keith moves his right hand in an impatient circle. “Why?”

Lance huffs out an irritated breath and crosses his arms. He’s doing everything in his power to avoid making eye contact with the red paladin because he knows as soon as he looks, he’ll be a goner. But, Keith has no way of knowing Lance’s reasoning and he sighs in irritation. For some reason, Lance’s voice is stuck in his throat and no amount of swallowing is helping him speak. 

A sigh breaks loose from Keith’s mouth once more and snatches his jacket quickly from the floor, sliding his arms in its sleeves so he can tuck his water bottle under his elbow and attach his bayard to his belt. “Never mind, this is a waste of my time.”

He spins around and starts to move briskly toward the door, but Lance finally regains the ability to move and speak. He wipes his sweaty palms on his pants and sprints to catch up with Keith. “Wait!” He yells, but Keith doesn’t stop walking so Lance resorts to latching onto his bicep and refusing to let go. This gets Keith to stop, and Lance takes a moment to relish in the fact that Keith’s skin is comfortably warm through the material of his jacket.

“Lance, what?” Keith turns around to face Lance, his arms now crosses and an eyebrow raised. Lance finds himself relieved that the other paladin doesn’t remove his hand and, this time, he doesn’t back down from making eye contact.

“You know I don’t hate you, right?” Lance finally spits out, his voice sounding a lot softer than he’d originally planned. 

This statement visibly shocks Keith, making his eyes widen and his posture stiffen. “Excuse me?”

“I know we fight,” The blue paladin continues. He’s on a roll, there’s no way he’s backing down now. “And we argue, a lot, but you know that it’s all in good fun and I don’t actually hate you, don’t you?”

“Please,” Keith actually laughs and it’s sarcastic and pleasant and Lance absolutely wants to hear more of it. His posture relaxes and he hesitantly pats a warm hand on top of Lance’s. “You don’t think that I could actually be bothered by all of that!”

It’s Lance’s turn to look stunned. He blinks once, twice, and tilts his head in confusion. “What?”

“As annoying as you are, I could never really hate you.” Keith finishes with a smirk on his face. How dare he look smug in this situation! Lance wants to hate the way his eyes light up, but of course he can’t.

“Oh,” Lance deflates with relief for a moment before he remembers that he’s the one who’s supposed to be all confident in this conversation so he swiftly removes his hand from Keith’s shoulder and props his hands up on his hips. “Well, of course I knew that, I was just making sure you did.”

“Uh-huh.” Keith hums, not at all looking convinced. “I’m sure that’s why.”

“Good!” Lance claps his hands together and slings his arm heavily across Keith’s shoulders and prays that the other teenager can’t feel how hard his heart is beating. “I’m glad we settled that! Now that we’re good buddies and all, what should we do?”

A light blush has crept its way across Keith’s cheeks and Lance wants to jump with joy at the sight. “I wouldn’t go that far,” He says in a monotone voice. But then, a beautiful smile breaks out across his face and Lance’s heart may as well have stopped. “But, I wouldn’t mind some lunch right now.”

Lance laughs and carries Keith’s water bottle like the gentleman former-rival he is. Keith doesn’t shove his arm off of his shoulders, so Lance counts that as a big win in his book. “Sounds absolutely amazing to me!”

They walk out of the training room together, Lance’s arms slung happily across Keith’s shoulders, both of their smiles bright enough to be a sure shock to their friends when they march into the kitchen. 

Nope, there’s no way that Lance could ever hate this.

**Author's Note:**

> Technically late once again! Nonetheless, I hope it was still enjoyable.


End file.
